The Seduction of Leonard Horatio McCoy
by TheSouthernScribe
Summary: With a little help from her friends, Nyota Uhura begins to see Leonard McCoy in a different light.


_**Disclaimer: Still don't own them. **_

_**The Seduction of Leonard Horatio McCoy**_

_The First Date from Hell..._

Nyota Uhura's first date with Leonard McCoy was arranged by two very adoring best friends. Gaila and Christine, urged their friend to do the entire crew a favor and sweep the contrary southern gentleman off his feet. The night started on a semi-stressful note. She allowed both women to arrange her wardrobe for the evening against her better judgment.

"Where is the rest of the dress," Nyota scoffed when Gaila pushed the black cocktail dress in her direction.

Nyota's indignation continued when the ship's head nurse dropped a pair of patent leather peep toe pumps at her feet.

The women ignored her.

Gaila and Christine forced her body into the slim fitting dress, flattened the natural wave from her hair, and all before they provided a final touch of glossy shine to her lips.

The two trouble makers delivered her to the transporter room.

"Relax Ny, this is Len. If anyone can charm him, you can," Christine fluffed her friend's hair one last time before placing a kiss on her cheek.

"Forget the charm - seduction is the name of the game my favorite little brain." Gaila grabbed her by the shoulders, "You need to get laid."

Nyota shrugged off her friend's grasp and moved towards the doors. She rolled her eyes when the two women waved and blew kisses in her direction.

For all their good intentions the doctor and the linguist's date ended in the sickbay of the USS Enterprise. It wasn't a life – threatening medical emergency but a regrettable incident due to an unexpected allergic reaction to Bajoran Springwine.

Nyota played with the pleated hem of her dress and struggled not to lacerate one of Len's shins with the heels of her stilettos. She breathed a sigh of relief, thankful for liquid courage when the waiter placed the ivory colored, gold embossed bottle in the center of the table once he filled their two goblets to the brim. The wine was a complimentary gift bestowed upon all the Starfleet personnel who ventured to the planet's surface and indulged in a meal at the celebrated establishment.

The night's invitation left Nyota in a rare state of speechlessness. Yes, he had been coerced into requesting the honor of her presence by their mutual friends, but there had to have been _some_ interest there. In all the years they had been acquainted, Nyota had never known Leonard to do anything against his will. Without hesitation she would definitely refer to him as a friend, not once had she allowed her mind to wander and consider more.

_Until…_

She blamed the pale white cotton shirt that caressed his skin and the candlelight that accentuated the gold undertones in his eyes. She swallowed her glass in one gulp as the butterflies in her stomach unleashed a massive attack on her calm demeanor.

When had Dr. Leonard McCoy become eye candy?

The liquid was sweet to the buds on her tongue and positively full of refreshment. Kava juice was by far her favorite contribution from the Bajoran culture. Nyota's eyes stretched with the realization of the fruit that had been pressed to birth the delicacy they enjoyed. Before she could steer the doctor to the pitcher of water positioned beside the near empty bottle, McCoy was well on his way to a third glass, and all, before she could utter one word of caution.

The prayer for divine intervention went unanswered as she watched the man tug at his collar, rub his hands together, and scratch the perimeter of his mouth. McCoy's words began to slur and Nyota forced herself to swallow the lump at the back of her throat.

The restaurant's other patrons were tuned to McCoy's physical developments even as it appeared he wasn't aware of the building reaction.

"Remember that night Jim made those shots and you swelled up like a balloon," Nyota questioned before her lips enticed the final drop that lingered in her glass.

"Hell, how could I forget…looked like the village idiot who swallowed the plastic bubble."

McCoy's face was red and he had begun to sweat. This was not going to end well.

"Did you ever determine the allergen?"

She braced herself for the impact of his answer. Why did she even inquire? The response was obvious based on the perfect pout his lips formed due to the increasing fluid that filled them.

"Kava juice."

Nyota grabbed his fingers, which now resembled, poorly replicated breakfast sausage links, before they could connect to the glass on his left. The bangles on her arm clattered as she waved frantically in attempt to gain their waiter's attention.

"Check please."

Getting Leonard from the restaurant to station for transport proved to be tricky. Nyota used inventive measures to balance his weight against her side as they waited for their coordinates to be obtained. The doctor was now burdened by that no longer fit his shoes, yet another devastating side effect of the allergic reaction to the libations enjoyed during their meal. What was next? His pants? Shirt? She was confident this is not what Gaila meant when she suggested seducing the man.

When they materialized on the transporter pad, Scotty did a double take, opened his mouth to speak, and decided against it. With one arm wrapped around the doctor's waist, Nyota lugged McCoy through the corridors as they winded their way to sickbay. Despite the prevalent wheeze that accompanied his breathing, the ship's Chief Medical Officer still managed to degrade his Head Nurse before he lost consciousness after a dose from his prized hypo.

The nurse had assured Nyota the doctor's life was in no danger; she could drop by in the morning to check his progress before the start of her shift.

"Thanks Chris." Nyota smiled sweetly before she brushed past her friend and colleague and grabbed a spare blanket and pillow from the supply closet.

Christine shook her head, "He's a grouch in the morning; don't say I didn't warn ya."

Nyota kicked of her heels, curled up in the chair beside the bio- bed and drifted off to sleep. A few hours later she woke to the soft hum of machines and the quiet murmurs of a southern voice lost in slumber. The jagged layers of his short hair were tousled and fresh drool saturated his pillow. His lips were turned up in a peaceful smile that she couldn't help but mirror. The swelling was not as pronounced as it had been hours earlier. The natural shape of McCoy's mouth had returned as well as Nyota's desire to kiss those lips…

She leaned in closer and his breath tickled her face. The butterfly ninjas returned to the pit of her stomach.

Nyota's hand cradled her chin as she studied his face. She cataloged the way the bushy hair of his brows swept up into a peak, the bridge of his nose that held a hint of sunburn from their last shore leave, and the mouth trained in the art of insult. Nyota fell back into the chair and shook off the thoughts on repeat in her head.

She didn't know when she had slipped back to dreamland but the morning held new promise when two tested and tried lips delivered a chaste kiss to her forehead.

Her eyes popped open and she found a disheveled but extremely handsome McCoy standing over her, "Next time I'll stick to bourbon."

_Next time…_


End file.
